Trsteno, Dubrovnik, Historic settlement near Dubrovnik, Croatia
Trsteno is a settlement on the Dalmatian coast near Dubrovnik featuring stone buildings distributed across a hillside overlooking the sea. The village has narrow lanes and a central square with ancient trees, where views extend across the Adriatic.
Members of the Gučetić family established a botanical garden in the late 15th century, collecting plants from their maritime voyages across the Mediterranean. This project turned the location into a notable center for rare and exotic plant species along the Adriatic coast.
The settlement shows traditional Dalmatian life through its stone houses with shuttered windows and small gathering spaces where residents meet daily. Local eating places prepare seafood using methods passed down through generations, and you can watch people maintaining these customs in their everyday routines.
The coastal road D8 connects the village to Dubrovnik, with regular buses running throughout the day making transport straightforward. The central square sits at the heart of the settlement, though the sloped streets are narrow and hilly, so wear comfortable walking shoes.
Two ancient Oriental Plane trees stand in the central square, each over 500 years old and reaching about 20 meters in height. These trees survived both the warfare of the 1990s and a forest fire in 2000, and they remain the most recognizable feature of the square today.
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